After Catering Income Was Unproved, Chhattisgarh HC Uses ₹10,100 Monthly Minimum Wage To Raise Widow And Children’s Crash Compensation By ₹2.60 Lakh

In brief

The question

Whether the Tribunal’s assessment of the deceased’s monthly income at Rs. 7,410 should be enhanced in the absence of credible evidence supporting the claimed income of Rs. 15,000.

The court held

The appeal was partly allowed.

It also directed

The total compensation was enhanced from Rs. 9,22,288 to Rs. 11,82,680, entitling the appellants to an additional Rs. 2,60,392, with interest at 6% per annum from the date of filing the claim application until realization.

The remaining terms of the Tribunal’s award were maintained.

The Registry was directed to communicate the enhanced amount to the claimants in Hindi.

01Facts

The claimants, the widow and children of Satpathi Barik, appealed under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, seeking enhancement of compensation for his death in a road accident on 20 December 2023.

¶ 1

The Claims Tribunal had awarded Rs. 9,22,288, assessing the deceased’s monthly income at Rs. 7,410. The claimants asserted that he earned Rs. 15,000 per month from catering work; the Tribunal’s award was challenged as inadequate.

¶ 1–2

The deceased was 53 years old and left three dependants.

¶ 5–6

02Issues

i.Whether the Tribunal’s assessment of the deceased’s monthly income at Rs. 7,410 should be enhanced in the absence of credible evidence supporting the claimed income of Rs. 15,000.

¶ 2, 5

ii.Whether the total compensation awarded by the Tribunal required enhancement.

¶ 2, 7–8

03Law Applied

Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 provides for an appeal against an award of the Claims Tribunal.

¶ 1

In assessing compensation, the Court relied on the principles concerning future prospects and conventional heads in National Insurance Company Ltd. v. Pranay Sethi, (2017) 16 SCC 680; the deduction for personal expenses and multiplier in Sarla Verma & Ors. v. Delhi Transport Corporation & Ors., (2009) 6 SCC 121; and consortium in Magma General Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Nanu Ram @ Chuhru Ram & Ors., (2018) 18 SCC 130.

¶ 7

The Court assessed income by reference to the Chhattisgarh minimum-wages notification for unskilled labour.

¶ 5

Provisions in the judgment · 1 · Linked ones open on LawLens

Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 Section 173

04Reasoning

The claimants produced no credible evidence that the deceased earned Rs. 15,000 per month through catering work. Given the accident date and the three dependants, the Court substituted the Tribunal’s income assessment with the applicable unskilled-labour minimum wage of Rs. 10,100 per month.

¶ 5

It retained the Tribunal’s 10% addition for future prospects, one-third deduction for personal expenses, and multiplier of 11.

¶ 6

Applying those figures produced a loss-of-dependency award of Rs. 9,77,680; the Court left the amounts for attendant and special diet, consortium, funeral expenses, and loss of estate unchanged.

¶ 7